Electric fluid-heater.



M. SIMON. LECTRIC FLUID HEATER.

APPLICATION HLED JULY!4.191I.

Patented Oct. 22, 1918.

with the end plate removed.

v UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MAURICE SIMON, or sT. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

ELECTRIC FLUID-HEATER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed July 14, 1917. Serial No. 180,532.

novel construction, arrangement and combination of parts hereinafterdisclosed.

An object of the invention is to produce a simple, compact and efficientheating unit that is primarily adapted to be inserted in and to besupported by the wall of ahot water storage tank of the usual type forheating the water in the tank.

Another object of the invention is to provide a heating unit of the typementioned, designed so that it may be economically manufactured andeasily repaired.

Other advantages inhere in the structure of the invention that will bereadily apprehended from the following disclosure thereof taken inonnection with the accompanying drawings, and in which igure 1 is a viewpartially in section and partially in side elevation of the heating unitof the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a view partially in section and partially intop plan of theconstruction of the invention. y

Fig. 3 is a view partially in section of the resistance element removedfrom the case.

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the resistance element removed from thecase.

Fig. 5 is an end view of the heating unit Fig. 6 is an end view of theheating unit. Fig. 7 is a view illustrating the opposite end of the unitto that illustrated in Fig.

6, and

Fig. 8 is a cross section through the heating element taken on theline88 of Fig. 3.

n the embodiment of the invention illustrated the heating unit is shownas c0nsisting of a socket member 1, which member has a tapered threadedportion 2. The body of the socket member is extended outwardly adjacentto the inner end of the'threaded portion-2. thereby forming a flange orshoulder 3. This construction permits the socket to be threaded into anopening 4 through the wall of the tank 5. The threaded portion is madeof standard size thread and is of a diameter standard with the ordinaryopening in a hot water storage tank of the usual type, so that it isonly necessary to remove the usual lug and to insert the socket withinthe tan In order to seal the opening a gasket 6 may be provided, whichgasket is interposed between the face of the shoulder Patented Oct. 22,1918.

3 and the face of the boss 7, surrounding I the threaded opening in thetank.,

There is an opening 8 through the central part of the socket memberwhich is oblong in form and which extends inwardly from the face of the.threaded portion to approximately the center of the socket body. In

this opening the case of the heating element is mounted. In the innerface-of the socket body, at either side of the opening 8, recesses 9 areformed. The recesses 9 extend inwardly substantially the depth of theopening 8. These recesses are provided so that.

the fluid from the tank may pass into the socket body, serving to coolthe body to prevent overheating from that part of the heating elementthat extends into the socket.

The outer face of the socket body is deeply recessed, there being acircular recess 10 near the center of the socket body and a recess 11 oflarger diameter extending from the outer face of the socket member tothe edge of the recess 10, thereby providing a shoulder 12. Within therecess 11 is inserted an insulated base block 13. The base block 13 hason its outer face an oblong extension 14. Terminal binding posts 15 aremounted in the block 13 extending outwardly through the projection 14,the inner ends of said terminal bind ing posts being within recesses 16formed in the inner face of the block. The outer ends of the terminalbinding posts project from the face of the projection 14 and are adaptedto receive a slip socket of a flexible electrical'conducting cord. Theends of the resistance element are connected with the respectiveterminal binding posts by binding nuts 17 which seat within the recesses16.

The heating element comprises a case 18 which in practice may be readilymade by flattening brass or copper tubing and pressing one end'thereoftogether and brazing it to form a sealed flattened case. The open end ofthe case 18 is mounted within the oblong opening 8 inthe socket member;The resistance element proper comprises a continuous stretch of slot-tedmetallic ribbon 19 which is arranged in a double fold as illustratedparticularly in Fig. 2.

The metallic ribbon is arranged compactly with strips of insulatingmaterial 20, preferably sheet mica, disposed between the folds of theribbon and covering the outer face of each ofthe outer, folds, theribbon and the mica insulation being held in contact form by marginalmetallic binding strips 21 which extend around the edges and around theinner end of the alternate layers of the metallic ribbon and of theinsulating material. At the outer ends the metallic binding strip 21 ispressedtogether as indicated at 22, having at the extremity of theportion 22 separable leaves 23. The extremities 22 of the binding stripsare insertible. through slots 24 in the insulating block, and the leaves23 are bent over at right angles so as to hold the heating element inconnection with the insulating block.

At each end of the stretch of resistance ribbon are terminal strips 25having perforations 26 therein which'fit over the inner ends of thebinding posts 15 and are held in place thereon by the nuts 17.

The insulating block 13 is held in place in the socket member by a topplate 27 which has an oblong opening 28 therein, fitting over theprojection 14 of the insulating block. The plate 27 is removably held inplace by screws 29 that thread into openings 30 formed in the socketmember in the outer face of the shoulder 12, the screws 29 passingthrough openings 31 in the insulating block.

It will be observed from the above description that the parts may beeasily assembled so that the device may be readily manufactured and sothat replacement may be easily made.

I am aware that the structure may be modified in numerous particularswithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. I do notlimit myself, therefore, to the exact details shown anddescribed, butwhat I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A heating element, comprising strips of flat insulating material,resistance materlal disposed therebetween, means in the form of metallicbinding strips for maintaining the aforesaid members in a compactrelation to each other, an insulating base block, and means arranged atthe ends of said metallic binding for maintaining said heating elementrigidly and removably afiixed to the insulating base block, said blockcarrying terminal members, substantially as specified.

2. An electric heating unit, comprising a socket, a case projectingtherefrom, a heatlng element adapted to be removably inserted into saidcase, an insulating base block, terminalmembers in said base block,

and means for maintaing said heat-ing element rigidly andremovablyafiixed to said base block.

3. An electric heating unit, comprising a socket, a flattened casesupported by said socket, a fiat heating element adapted to be removablyinserted into said case, and consisting of strips of mica insulatingmaterial with a resistance circuit disposed therebetween, and marginalclamping means for maintaining said heating element in a compact andhermetically sealed condition.

4. An electric heating unit, comprising a socket, a flat shell supportedby said socket and closed at the end remote therefrom, a heating elementadapted to be removably in serted into said shell, an insulating baseblock carrying terminal members adapted to be fitted into and supportedby said socket, and a plate fitted to said socket for maintaining saidinsulating block and the heating element in position.

5. A heating unit adapted to be inserted in and supported by the wallsof a tank, comprising a socket member arranged to be secured in anopening in the tank, a sealed case extending inwardly from said socket,a heating unit mounted in said case and comprising a resistance circuitcomposed of slotted fiat sheets of resistance material, sheets ofinsulating material covering the surface of said resistance circuit, amarginal metallic binding strip holding said insulating material andsaid resistance circuit together, an insulating block adapted to bemounted in the socket, connections between said metallic binding stripand said block whereby said strip is supported by said block, andterminal members in said block connected with said resistance circuit. I

6. An electric heating unit, comprising a socket adapted to be fittedinto the wall of a tank and having cavities formed therein forpermitting the water in the tank to come in contact with and cool thesocket, a case 110 supported by the socket and extending inwardly aconsiderable distance therefrom,

a resistance unit comprising folds of resistance wire having insulatingmaterial therebetween with binding strips for holding the 115 resistancewire and insulating material together, the said resistance element beinginsertible into said case, an insulating block insertible in andremovable from said socket having terminal members for attaching an 129energizing circuit thereto, and connecting means for supporting the caseof the resistance element in connection with said block.

7. A heating unit adapted to be inserted in and supported by the wallsof a tank, comprising a socket member arranged to screw into an openingin the tank. a case.

a resistance element comprising strips of flat insulating material,resistance material disposedtherebetween, and means for bind- 1 ing thesame together insertible into said case, an insulating block removablymounted in the socket, and means arranged at the end of said resistanceelement for c0nnecting it with the insulating block.

8. An electric heating unit adapted to be supported by the Walls'of atank, comprising a socket having threaded 'nnrtions adapting it to bethreaded into an opening in the inserted into said case, an insulatingbase block, terminal members in said base block, and means forconnecting the heating element with thebase block.

W MAURICE SIMON.

